september sponsorship

August 30th, 2013

kid's clothes week {fall}

I posted over at the Kid’s Clothes Week blog, but in case you didn’t see it I wanted to tell all of you that we have fall sponsorship opportunities on the KCW site and blog. Sponsorship runs for 3 months at a time and there are 3 sizes to choose from as well (please see this post for more info).  They are filling up fast, but there are plenty of small spots available–and I know there are lots of amazing small shops and blogs out there! Sponsorship isn’t scary :) Drop us a line at kidsclothesweek@gmail.com !

 

elsie marley banner

I’m also excited to announce a new option for sponsorship on elsie marley: the little spot! It’s a small 125 pixel square spot that is just right for your growing business. It’s a super affordable way for elsie marley readers to discover your shop or blog. Please check out my sponsorship page to purchase the little sponsor spot or any other option. Now go have a lovely weekend!

 

banana birthday party!

August 28th, 2013

banana birthday party on elsie marley

My youngest turned 4 last week and we had a little birthday party to celebrate. He is very heavily into two things at the moment: cheetahs and bananas. Deciding between a cheetah party and a banana party was difficult, but bananas won out in the end. There aren’t a whole lot of banana themed party goods out there, so we had to make up our own.

banana phone on elsie marley

For a craft, we made a bunch of banana phones–you know the banana phone song don’t you? They are just tin can phones that we made with yellow cups and string. I thought they would be a little tricky for 4 year olds to make, so I made one for everyone ahead of time. We put them out with markers and stickers, and the kids decorated their own phones. I have to admit I was surprised they worked–and so well!

banana favors on elsie marley

For favors we gave out bunches of bananas! What else?! I scratched the message on with a toothpick. I’m kicking myself for not writing “thanks a bunch!” How did I miss such a perfect pun? Oh well.

banana birthday party by elsie marley

I was going to write banana jokes on the bananas too, but ended up putting them on the bags for the pinata candy. Here are a few more, because I know you need some bad banana jokes today:

  • Q: What kind of  key opens a banana? A: a monkey!
  • Q: Why are bananas never lonely? A: Because they hang around in bunches.
  • Q: How do monkeys get down the stairs? A: They slide down the banana-ster!
  • Q: What did the banana say to the monkey? A: Nothing, bananas can’t talk!

banana pinata by elsie marley

The candy bags were for a banana pinata, of course! And really, the pinata stole the show. The kids helped me make it. It might look super involved, but pinatas are actually super easy and super fun to make. Oh Happy Day has a ton of tutorials on pinatas if you are curious how to make them.

banana pinata diy by elsie marley

Mine is just cardboard and masking tape. Next time I will double the amount of masking tape because the pinata broke before everyone got a whack at it. The kids are getting bigger and stronger. They were too busy frantically gathering candy to be upset, though.

banana birthday party by elsie marley

The birthday boy got a few good hits in and that’s all that matters.

banana birthday party by elsie marley

The party was in the afternoon, so we just put out a few snacks. They were all yellow: yellow peppers, yellow watermelon (which the kids were afraid of, but was actually totally delicious), yellow tomatoes, banana chips, and lemonade.

banana birthday party on elsie marley

Instead of a birthday cake for dessert we had banana splits! There were bananas (of course), three kinds of ice cream, whipped cream, and real cherries for the top. The birthday boy was in heaven!

banana birthday party by elsie marley

And here is the banana birthday party aftermath:

banana birthday party by elsie marley

It was a banana blast!

 

 

 

popcorn for breakfast

 

Pinterest made me do it. Seems popcorn cereal is an old timey, pioneer treat. It’s also a dead easy breakfast if you have some leftover popcorn from movie night. Sadly only one of my kids liked it, but he liked it so much he ate everyone else’s!

summer journal: projects

August 16th, 2013

little chairs in rough shape

I bought these little chairs 5 years ago. And wow, they have been through a lot. They were in pretty rough shape…

little chairs in rough shape

…as you can see

recovering in action

Recovering them had been on my list for a very long time. I bought the oil cloth ages ago and then it just sat there, staring at me. Finally I just pulled out my staple gun and went for it!

little chairs all (recovered) in a row

And it was so much easier and faster than I ever imagined. Took me an hour or two tops!

recovered chair

Any projects you are finally crossing off your list this summer?

 

the alphabet collection by elsie marley

the title says it all: today is the last day to buy the alphabet collection! The collection includes four patterns, for both girls and boys, for 20 bucks. Not bad! You can see everything I made from the collection here and some of my favorites from the tour are pictured below.

alphabet collection favorites

1. by petit a petit & family 2. by melissa esplin 3. by kojo designs 4. by shwin & shwin 5. by crafiness is not optional 6. by petit a petit & family 7. by sew a straight line 8. by elegances & elephants

 

See all the amazing things you can make with just a few patterns! What are you waiting for? Oh wait, you can’t wait–today is the last day to buy the alphabet collection!!